Innocence Among The Ashes
by Erybis
Summary: An exiled man wanders, looking for a life. Possessing a gift with machines, the mechanical genius of the Capital Wasteland is still missing something. Maybe a girl can find it for him. Rated T for Violence and Language.
1. Birth

Love. A chemical, nothing more, nothing less. Our brain's way of fooling us into hoping for something better, a happy existence. You can't find that in the Wasteland. You just hope you survive. So... why do I even give a fuck about this girl? With death staring me in the face, why can't the wretched tears stop?

* * *

My name is John Crench. I was born in Fort Independence. Those Outcasts, they tried a little to treat me like family, especially after my parents died in the field. But I was always defective. My right arm, struck by a barrage of bullets from a frankenstein's minigun when I was 15, had to be amputated from the shoulder. I never felt right, afterward. I was desperate to fix myself, to become valuable again. After five long years, at the age of twenty, I perfected a mechanical arm, built from remnants of Robco tech. It was the happiest day of my life. Until Casdin booted me out. Too much interacting with the locals, he says. Well, screw 'im. Who needs the Outcasts, anyway. I'm whole, now. Got a gun, and a gas mask. So I'll be fine.  
At least, that's what I told myself as I hid from the sadistic pricks after me.

"Come on out, freak! It's dinner time, and I'm hungry!"

I was lucky. Only one raider. My Wattz 1000 had enough juice for about five shots. It would be enough.

"Hey sicko. You ever seen actual tech before? Aside from that shitty pistol of your's."

I flashed my robotic hand, and pulled it back, two bullets flying after it. I dived to the other, into a crouch, took aim, and fired a shot, frying his head.

"Hmph. At least it was only one."

I walked toward his corpse, looking at what he had on him. An N99 10mm pistol, armor made from leather, a scarf, and a couple caps. I stripped off his armor, eager to put on something more substantial than my Specialist gear. I paused at the scarf, but took it anyway. Winter was coming, so I needed to bundle up.

"Marty, you around here?!"

Another raider. My luck couldn't get any worse. I crouched down, slinging the corpse over my shoulder, and crept into the decrepit bones of a pre-war home. A women appeared from down the road, brandishing what looked like a Norinco Type 56.

"Marty, stop hiding and come on out here! We found a little girl! I know how you much you love kids."

She cackled, but she was obviously getting nervous. My fingers tightened around my gun, and I switched it over to my right arm, allowing me to fire it one handed. I threw the corpse behind the car, alerting the women. When she walked over to investigate, I stood up, firing a shot at her head, missing.

"What the fuck?!"

She pointed her rifle at me, emptying a magazine, and I felt two bullets hit my abdomen. I gasped in pain, firing blindly, getting a shot into her arm.

"Agh!"

She dropped her rifle, staggering back and clutching at her arm. I took the moment to fire the last blast into her screaming mouth, and looking away from the resulting mess. My chest was constricted, the pain making my breathing difficult. I pulled a set of tweezers from my bag, and slid the armor off to take a look at the wound. The leather had stopped a bullet from fully penetrating, sticking out halfway. The other was deep in near my hip.

"Damn it."

I removed the first one easily, and stopped the bleeding. Replacing the energy cell in the Wattz, I set it ti low power and cauterized the wound, almost screaming out in pain. After stapling it, I moved onto the harder task. I jammed a rag from my backpack into my mouth, and after counting to three, plunged the tweezers into the entrance of the wound. My muffled howl sounded, and it continued as I let my right arm do the work. I felt the bullet, pinching it hard and wrenching it out.  
The blood was beginning to seep out in torrents, so I set my arm to maximum strength and pinched the wound closed, applying pressure until it stopped. After cauterizing and stapling it as well, I rose to my feet, in extreme pain. I snatched a syringe of morphine from my bag, jabbing it into my arm and sighing in peace, applying a stimpak afterward.

"Now, let's go see what goodies they were stockpiling."

I hobbled down the road, seeing the makeshift cardboard hut they must've been living in. I kicked in the door, pointing my Wattz at any occupants lying in wait. Instead of a raider, though, I found a little girl. Hmph, this must've been the girl that the women was talking about. She was unconscious, with a small bruise on her forehead. She looked about nine years old, and she was a cute kid, with short black hair, wearing some sort of trench coat made from scraps. I ignored her, stepping over and looking through the medkits and ammo boxes. I came up with three stimpaks, and a few bottles of water. Plenty of food, but nothing good.

"Aiiieee!"

I turned, raising my gun at the intruder behind me. It was the girl, awake and terrified.

"D-d-don't kill m-m-me...!"

I lowered the pistol, holstering it.

"I'm not going to kill you. I don't kill kids."

She stopped her whimpering, slowly trying to move backwards, toward the door. I couldn't care less about her leaving, as long as she didn't try and screw with me.

"HUMANS!"

Great. A Frankenstein. Just perfect. I glanced at the girl, who had move away from the door, now shaking.

"Hey. Girl. Get over here."

She looked frightened, but she complied. Anyone's chances would be better with me than with a Frankenstein.  
I closed the door, listening quietly as I prepared my last resort.

"These humans... Sleeping?"

"No, stupid, they're dead!"

"Hahaha, stupid humans!"

I rolled my eyes, supressing a sigh of frustration at having to listen to this stupidity. I hated the things. They wouldn't stand a chance against me, anyway. I armed the grenade, listen to the loud, high pitched whine that signaled it's status as armed.

"What that sound?"

I threw it, smiling sadistically as I did so, and ducked in cover. Without realizing it, I grabbed the girl, too. Didn't want her to get fried. That created quite a mess.

"Black... ball?"

The grenade sent out it's first wave of lasers, low power, spraying the mutants with red hot beams.

"AAAGHHH!"

It became more intense, and the screaming was beginning to get less frequent. Finally, it exploded, punching holes in the walls of the house I was hiding in.

"AAAAIIEEE!"

This scream was right beside me. I looked over, seeing a deadly burn on the little girl's left arm. I swore under my breath, feeling guilty. Stupid kid, shouldn't have been caught by the raiders in the first place. She was writhing in agony, crying and clutching at her arm.

"Girl, listen to me. This was my fault, I accept that. Let me patch you up, ok?"

She was crying too much to hear me, so I fished out my last bit of morphine, plunging about half into her thigh to compensate for size. Taken by surprise, her face froze, and grew peaceful.

"Stupid wastelander kid. Can't stay out of trouble, gotta make my day terrible. As if my bullet wound weren't bad enough."

I took a look at the burn, fearing the worse. I could see a flash of white, bad sign. At least she wouldn't feel pain after the initial agony. The muscle was seared almost completely, and I knew that her arm would be weaker for the rest of her life. I took out the small roll of tools I always carried around with me, and some scrap metal and electronics. Cutting off the dead, useless skin around the burn, I got to work shaping it into an almost ovular wound. My hands worked quickly, confidently, as I constructed the mechanical muscular supplement that was my pride and joy. The sun left without a word, and came back to check on my progress. The girl's condition had stabilized by then, but I had a short window of time before infection set in. My hands fumbled at the final, small screws to complete my work, and I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hah... see, I did it. Those stupid Outcasts. They threw away a genius."

I carefully placed the piece of tech over the scorch, and taking note that she had fallen asleep, plunged it inside. Her eyes flew open, the pain probably unfathomable. I activated the supplement, and it dug deeper, spreading out and attaching itself inside. She flinched several times, in reaction to each circuit installing itself into her body.

"Don't forget to breathe, kid. You haven't come all this way just to suffocate, have you?"

She forced air down her lungs, and the supplement finished it's job, reducing itself to a metallic patch on her arm.

"That should fix you right up, little girl. It relies on your ability to feed yourself, so the more you starve, the weaker it will be."

I stood up, and walked through the door, hopefully to find something on one of those frankensteins that was useful.

"Wait."

I stopped, glancing over at the small voice.

"Can I come with you?"

"Why?"

"You fixed my arm. And you killed those super mutants."

I shook my head, exasperated by the whole entire day.

"No. You can't come with me. You'll just slow me down."

I continued walking away, spying a discarded Wattz 2000 laser rifle. Hmm, finally, my luck seems to be turning. Too bad I don't have the luxury of microfusion cells.

"Please?"

The girl was still there, and her voice quivered, a pulley straining from the weight of the plea. I sighed, the sound muffled by my gas mask.

"Ugh. Listen, you can stick with me until we find any major settlement, or something. But that's it. I don't want to end up spending too much time with you Wastelanders if I can help with. Got it?"

She gave me a small smile, clearly happy with the terms.

"Ok."

Hrm. Great. I got a flea, now. This day really keeps getting worse, doesn't it? After collecting the laser" rifle, which I noticed had some damage from the grenade, I marched onwards, determined to find a place to sleep before the sun went down. At least, one that wasn't filled with corpses.

"What's your name?"

The girl tugged at my sleeve, trying to keep up, asking her inane questions.

"John. My name is John."

The only sounds were that of our footsteps, and they were annoying companions indeed.

"My name is Jade."

Jade. Strange name, never heard anything like it.

"Jade, please, stop talking. I'd like to walk and think. These thoughts are valuable, you know."

She became silent, but her small hand tried to slip into my own. I clenched my fist, to deny her that. She held onto my fist, anyway.

"I'm sorry, but is it in your nature to be so fucking clingy? Are all you Wastelanders like this?"

She looked hurt, her eyes moving to the floor. She dropped her hand as well. Whatever, the brat was getting on my nerves. Seriously, why is she so touchy?

"Hmph. Ok, I'm sorry for being pissy. You just... need to stop being a little girl."

I noticed a power station in the distance, probably a mile away.

"Hey. We're going to sleep in there, ok?"

She nodded, still sullen. The sky overhead rumbled, and rain began to fall. I was beginning to think this girl was a bad luck charm. The stump of my right arm began it's horrible aching, and I quickened my pace. The station was nearing, and I was overjoyed to see a bulwark of safety, finally within grasp.

"Hurry it up, now. I'm fucking tired."

I burst through the door just before the storm hit it's apex of misery, calling it's friends thunder and lightning. I threw my things to the floor, breathing a sigh of relief as I plopped down into a chair. The girl stood there, dripping, staring expectantly at me.

"What? You want food?"

She nodded, and her stomach mewled, voicing it's support. I sighed, throwing a can of pork and beans. It landed at her feet, and she stared at it, despondent.

"You can open that, right? It's pretty simple."

She shook her head, and I got up, exasperated. I peeled the top using the pin, and set it down in front of her, surprised with the voracity with which she wolfed it down.

"So how old are you, girl?"

She looked up, bean sauce covering her cheeks.

"10."

"How were you stupid enough to get caught by those raiders? They didn't seem like the sharpest tools in the shed."

She fell silent, and I started to feel just a tiny bit guilty for all the hassle I was giving her.

"Well, I guess it wasn't your fault. It's not like they weren't armed, or anything."

I turned away, pulling out my project from my pack. It was a work in progress, one I started around the age of 12. A human sized robot, one I kept in pieces while I lugged it around. I had dubbed him Cosmos, in a fit of childish excitement, but over time, his title became Casm. Because of him, I didn't have much room for essentials, but it would pay off once I finished. He was almost functional, only needing some work on his joints. I would probably end up holing up here in this power station in order to finish him.

"What's that?"

Jade's grubby face hovered over me, still covered in sauce.

"Agh, clean yourself, will you?!"

I threw a rag at her, intent on finishing my project before dawn. Assembling him fully, he was a head taller than me, thick and heavy. The storm rumbled, and my stump ached as I worked, my fingers flying as I connected the circuits of his knees together. I had modeled much of his body after human biology, but not completely, leaving room for the flexibility of turning his limbs in impossible directions. A lot of his parts came from scraps of power armor, broken suits scavenged from the Outcasts. The one, rare component I had, though, was an AI chip that I had stolen from the Brotherhood. While they were busy studying some large war machine, the Outcasts had snuck in and stolen a LOT of tech. The Pentagon was ripped with Pre-War secrets, but my treasure was the single AI chip. It was blank, with no information, no knowledge. I would have to teach my creation how to walk, talk, fight. But it would be worth it.

"It's amazing, mister."

The little girl's face was bright with admiration, and I grinned.

"Of course it is. It's a work of love and labor that's 8 years old."

"That's almost as old as I am!"

I ignored her, connecting up the rest of the joints, and testing the flexibility.

"It's set up! Now, the AI chip."

Carefully, hands shaking, I opened up the compartment on the back of his head, and found myself gazing at the empty port I had fashioned to integrate with the rest of the body.

"This is it. After 8 long years, I'm finally finished."

I sighed, chuckling, while rubbing the metal plates that I had made so long ago.

"I can't believe it. I'm really going to do this."

Taking a deep breath, I slid the chip in, slapped some electron charge packs inside, and powered it on. Casm began to whir, and his eyes sparked up, blinding me. I crouched down, stunned by the light.

"DAEDALUS ACTIVATED."


	2. Education

-Daedalus-

Adult male. Gas mask. Girl. Mechanical component.

"Daedalus, hmm? Well, I guess I should scrap Casm."

Adult male. Speech. Casm.

"Try moving your limbs. See, look at me. Watch my arms."

Adult male. Bending. Arms. Running imitation simulation. Successful.

"Good, good. You're learning. That's amazing. I'm SUCH a genius!"

"It's scary. Is the robot like the others I've seen? The ones that shoot at you?"

Female child. Speech. Fear.

"No, no. It's fine, he has no built-in weapons. He's like a baby, actually. Daedalus, move your legs, like this."

Adult male. Speech. Female child. Reassurance. Daedalus. Baby.

"Daedalus, look at me. Move your legs, like this."

Adult male. Moving legs. Running imitation simulation. Unsuccessful. Warning. Concussive force.

"Ow! Damn, you're heavy, heavier than normal."

Warning. Warning. Data overload. Shutting down.

* * *

-John-

"Fuck, he's stupid. I should've expected as much."

Daedalus lay on the floor, faceup. What a disappointment. I thought that chip was empty. It was a military project, though. There had to be some preliminary programming.

"Why did it fall?"

Jade's eyes shined with curiosity, intrigued by my robotic creation. I was too happy to be cynical, so I answered.

"He's learned enough, tonight. He'll wake up tomorrow morning. Right now, I need to scavenge."

I picked up my rifle, pistol, and now light backpack. Standing up, I glanced at Jade.

"Umm. Just stay and keep guard, I guess."

She nodded, eyes still fixated on Daedalus. Whatever. I went out the door, making a mental checklist of what I needed. My ultimate goal was to find a programming manual. Something to help me actually teach Daedalus how to function. Microfusion cells would be nice, so I could use the Wattz 2000 I found. Finally, I needed some meds, too. I'm running low on Buffout, and the cravings are kicking in.

"Hmph. Might as well take the last ones."

I popped my last pills, feeling the pain slip from my stomach.

"That's better."

I stopped to carve an arrow into a nearby tree. It was something that helped me keep track of my way. The city ruins loomed in the distance, and I grinned, jovial for the first time.

"Wow. Maybe I was wrong, ever since that girl came along, I've been doing great. That brat might be more useful than I thought."

I adjusted my mask, and trudged forward, hopeful of my chances.

* * *

-Jade-

That man sure is mean. He always cusses at me, even though I'm trying to be nice. He did fix up my arm.

"Female child."

The metalman! I turned around, seeing him. He was sitting, and staring at me. He had glowy eyes, all lit up and pretty.

"Are you talking to me, Mister Daydals?"

The robot just sat there, making weird noises. Slowly, he moved his head up and down.

"That means yes, Mister Daydals."

I nodded, repeating the word, and he started to try it for himself.

"Yes. Yes. Yes."

He kept repeating it, his eyes lighting up brighter. I giggled, and Mister Daydals stopped.

"Mister Daydals. That's you."

He was quiet, and whirring noises came from his head. I pointed at him, saying his name.

"Mister Daydals."

There was a clicking sound, and he talked again.

"Honorific recognized. True designation: Daydals. Request. Username of female child."

He wants my name? I guess I should tell him. I pointed at myself, saying it loudly.

"Jade."

"Username: Jade. Activation. Adoption protocol. Daydals. Request: Cerebral data transference. Please input."  
I didn't understand. He wasn't making any sense. But I think he was asking a question. Should I say yes?

"Umm. Yeah?"

"User input recognized as affirmation. Commencing cerebral data transmission."

He kept saying stuff I didn't get. Then, the world began to get darker and darker, and it was hard to stay awake. I started to fall down, and the last thing I saw was Mister Daydals's eyes, like stars.

* * *

-John-

I hid behind the crumbling pillar of a Techie's, listening to the raiders squabble from a small camp beside the entrance.

"Hey, let me read that! You got to read last night."

"Yeah, well, we've already gone through it a million times. Ever since that guy gave it to Mom, all we do is read it."

"It's still my turn! I need to learn about tourniquets."

"Oh, shut up, Eric. There's no point."

These raiders are pretty loud. I snuck out from my hiding place, my boots crunching on the gravel.

"Hey Brian, I hear someone."

I stopped, holding my breath. These damn raiders.

"Whoever's there, show yourself! I have a bucket of grenades just waiting for you if you try anything."

I hung my head, knowing when I should surrender. I don't screw with explosives of any kind. I tread toward the camp, their fire illuminating my form.

"I'm not looking for a fight, I just want to get into that Techie's."

One of them, an ugly and scarred bastard with one eye, spoke first.

"How do we know that's the truth? We've run into a lot of people saying the same thing. Those are their corpses, over there."

He pointed at a pile of men, and I spied a Brotherhood of Steel member with a bullet hole in his visor.

"You're a good shot..."

I took a guess at his name, trying to recall their voices.

"Brian."

Brian grimaced, and he held his little brother closer to him, a teenager, probably 16.

"That's not my handiwork, guy. It's Eric's."

I noticed the kid, and focused on the sniper rifle that glinted, silently reprimanding myself for missing such a vital detail.

"Hi, Eric. That's a pretty nice rifle, you got there. Looks like it's in bad condition. Will you and your brother let me pass I fix it for you?"

I stepped forward, and Eric adjusted his aim, the bullet probably staring at my forehead from it's home in the barrel.

"Drop all your weapons. Now."

I was sweating behind my mask, feeling desperate. My mind raced for something to say.

"Listen, I got a little girl waiting for me. 10 years old. If I never make it back, she'll starve, or die. Please, kid."

His right eye, the other behind a scope, softened, and he lowered the rifle a tiny bit. I grinned, relieved.

"I will fix that rifle. But in return, you have to let me see that power armor over there, and let me enter Techie's."

Brian had a scowl on his face, the mass of scars constricted into a mess.

"No. We need more than just a tune up."

I put my hands down, keeping one close to my pistol.

"How about a few cans of Cram? I got about 4."

Eric looked disgusted, but Brian was satisfied.

"Deal."

I reached into my pack, slowly, as to not test them, and rolled the cans toward them.

"Alright, now, how am I going to take a look at the rifle?"

Eric took out the cartridge, and popped the bullet in the chamber, now walking towards me.

"Here. Don't try anything funny, we still have those grenades."

Brian currently had one in his hand, ready to be thrown.

"Ok, ok. I'll get started."

I sat down, and worked my magic. Half an hour later, it was in top condition.

"Alright. Come and get it."

Eric ran over, obviously ecstatic.

"Thanks. Now get your things, and get out of here."

I nodded, and made my way to the BOS corpse. His armor was almost pristine. Just graduated from Squire. Idiot. I pried the targeting optics from his helmet, and the oxygen tanks from his bank, along with their re-breather. I gave it a thought, and took some of the armor plating off as well. I scurried into Techie's, watched by the two still apprehensive brothers.

* * *

-Daydals-

Data scanned. Analysis complete. Physical coordination procedures: compatible. Current time and events: acquired. Mental imprint: ERROR. Psychological imitation: rejected due to excessive trauma. Booting up.

"Daydals, activated."

The robot stood up, in full control of his limbs. He surveyed the room, spying the unconscious girl before him. He recognized her as the user and host of his cerebral data transmission. Daydals bent down, studying the girl. Instinctual programming suggested that he exit the building and head for the nearest settlement to fortify. But the robot felt hesitation.

"User: Jade. Are you able to respond?"

She was silent, and he scanned her vitals, via brain wave reception. He concluded that the host was incapacitated, and could not defend herself.

"Mission parameters changed. Protect the user from all aggressors."

Daydals trudged over to the entrance of the domicile. He sighted super mutant bodies, and walks toward them, curious. Reaching one, he scanned for residual brain waves, finding the barest remnants dying out. He analyzed them, acquiring what information he could scavenge.

"Organism designated by user as super mutant. Secondary alias: frankenstein. Hostile. User history suggests that all are hostile toward humans. Beginning biological scan."

Daydals noted the long slash marks that had sliced open veins, and a sample of the super mutants blood was made, in order to be analyzed when he had the proper equipment. He hypothesized, judging from the moistness of the blood and the warmth of the corpse, that it had died 5-10 minutes ago.

"Reaction: Standby for possible combatants in proximity."

He looked at the sledgehammer that was still in the super mutant's hand. He picked the weapon up, calibrating for weight and balance.

"Hostile. Location: near domicile."

The robot turned to the sounds emanating from the door, and the deathclaw that had recently arrived looked back, taking in the new prey.

"Creature: unknown. Suggestions: carnivore, due to mandibles and biological weaponry. Hypothesis: Purpose is to kill and consume User Jade. Conclusion: NEUTRALIZE."

The deathclaw began sprinting at Daydals, satisfied to have found a new prey to hunt. The robot stood still, balancing the sledgehammer, and as the deathclaw lunged, he swung.

* * *

-John-

"This place has been looted a few times. I can tell."

The shelves were barren with the exception of a few scraps, but I found a stash of MF cells in the manager's office. Loading them in, I felt the rifle hum with satisfaction, and I was glad. I finally found my baby, the one I'd been looking for.

"Alright, let's try the second floor, and let's get out of here."

My back was feeling great, finally free of an unassembled Daedalus. I took out a small hand mirror, using it to peek around a corner. Sure enough, a giant mole rat was sniffing around, and it caught my scent.

"Alright, fucker, let's see how you like being fried."

I jumped out, and fired a shot from my rifle, searing the rat's face off. I laughed, congratulating myself on my amazing shooting skills.

"Those Outcasts are complete retards. Who needs 'em."

I strode down the hall, checking the next room on my right.

"Score. Thank you, Lady Luck."

I snatched up a pile of circuit boards and copper wiring, and almost leaped for joy when I uncovered a half burnt Programmer's Digest.

"I knew there'd be some good stuff up here."

Making one final sweep, I poked my head inside the next room, and ducked down as a laser almost burned it off.

"Ah, Protectrons. Such a primitive, yet deadly machine."

I dived inside, rolled, and came up into a crouch, firing a shot at it's main processor, located near the top. Sure enough, I hit it, but I clutched at my right calf from the last shot it fired.

"Fuck me, that hurts!"

I bandaged the wound up, and limped to a standing position, leaning on a nearby shelf.

"Wait a second. Yes, jackpot!"

I hobbled over to the medical office, required for employees hurt on the job by malfunctioning bots.  
Burn medicine wouldn't be hard to find, if it wasn't empty. I scoured the room, coming up with some ointment for the burns and more than a couple stimpacks, but no Buffout. I hissed in frustration, cursing every man, woman, or child that was here before me.

"I need that medicine, damn it!"

I sighed, and left the Techie's, waving at the two brothers. Following my road signs, finally got within safe distance of my home, before the rain started again.

"Good to be home. I wonder how that brat is doing. Better not have touched my beautiful creatio- holy hell. What happened here?!"


	3. Conflict

-Daydals-

Daydals stood there, a long slash mark on his torso. The sledgehammer in his hand was bloodied, and he was staring down at the remnants of the deathclaw's head.

"Hostile neutralized. Self assessment: damage to torso minor, not critical. Next order: return to User Jade."

"What the hell?!"

Daydals targeted the new arrival, searching it's memory banks for previous data.

"Data found. Subject designation: John. Status: has custody of User Jade. History: verbally abusive, prone to violence, arrogant. New parameters. Accompany User Molly to halt subsequent psycholoical trauma."

John ran up to the robot, exasperated.

"How are you up?! And when did you learn how to walk and talk? Did you kill this deathclaw?! With that sledgehammer?!"

Daydals ignored the questions, moving back to Jade, just as she was waking.

"User Jade. You have attained consciousness. What are your orders?"

Jade rubbed her eyes, trying to focus on the robot.

"What happened, Mister Daydals?"

The robot ran through the events, listing them in chronological order for the girl. Jade gaped at him, until she was slammed against the wall by John.

"What did you do, you little brat? I left you to guard, and you screw up my robot?!"

Daydals acted, ripping Jade from John's grasp and pushing him against the wall.

"Aggressor detected. Warning: do not harm or physically assault User Jade in any way, or Daydals will be forced to enact lethal force against the aggressor."

Daydals let go of John, who took off his mask and sat down, tired out of his mind.

"Great. You ruined my robot. I built him, found all the parts, risked everything to make him, and now he's your robot."

Jade had a quizzical expression on her face, but turned to the robot.

"Daydals. Do that thing you did to me. But to him, Mister John."

Daydals interpreted these new commands and reiterated them.

"User Jade requests that Daydals perform a second cerebral data transmission with Aggressor John?"

Molly nodded vigorously, smiling.

"Yes, what you said."

Daydals crouched, close to the exiled Outcast.

"Commencing cerebral data transmission."

John backed away, holding his hands up.

"Don't do anything you'll regret, Daedalus. I built you, and I can destroy you, too."

Daydals made an attempt at performing the CDT, but ran into an error.

"Error. Cerebral data transmission function exhausted. Please wait 8,743 hours before trying again."

John relaxed, chuckling.

"Well, that's good. I don't want you to damage my advanced brain in anyway."

Daydals observed John, taking in every detail of his clothing, armor, physique, and capabilities.

"Aggressor John. Status has been changed to friendly. Friendly John must not enact aggressive actions, physical or verbal, towards the user. Will you comply?"

John glared at Jade, enraged by the robbery of his creation.

"I will comply."

"Friendly John. Beginning adoption protocol. Mission parameters changed. Protect User Molly and Friendly John."

* * *

-John-

Damn it, I knew my debt with Lady Luck would catch up to me. That brat, Jade, rode high on Daedalus's-, I mean Daydals's, shoulders. I kept my distance in front, walking west along a pre-War road, passing a Super Duper Mart. I can't believe how unlucky I am.

"Hey, bra- Jade. How'd this happen?"

Jade bounced up and down, and the robot didn't react at all.

"He woke up. And then he did something weird. After that, I fell asleep, and suddenly, he could do all the stuff he does."

I grumbled, smashing rocks under my boots to vent.

"Thanks for stealing my robot, then."

As we walked down the road, I noticed 3 dark figures in the distance. They were too far away for me to make out any details, but I had a hunch that they were bad news.

"Hey! Look alive, possible enemies."

"Targets scanned. Entering combat mode. User Jade. Please stay behind the unit."

I heard the kid set down onto the road, and she ran behind my robot. We got closer, and I made out the signature armor of my old friends, the Outcasts.

"Halt, Wastelander. Relinquish that robot, or we will be forced to take it by force."

I knew that voice. It was Ed, the closest thing I had to a brother in the fort.

"Hey, Ed. Don't you recognize your dear old bud, John?"

Ed lowered his rifle, jogging forward, while the rest if his group kept their weapons up.

"John? I can't believe my eyes. I thought you would die out here."

"Hah. Well, it IS me, after all. You really think I'd go down like a bitch that fast?"

I heard him chuckle, and I loosened up, feeling more safe.

"Casdin really made a mistake letting go of you. To think, you got that old pile of scrap up and running. And you're still alive, despite your attachment to that antiquated line of laser weapons. Just because Wattz weapons are rare does not mean that they are better."

"Yeah, well, call it sentimentality. It was my father's, after all."

He sighed, shaking his head.

"Well. Sorry to have to do this, but you gotta hand the robot over."

Ed raised his rifle, sounding grim and determined. He was joking, right?

"Ed. Don't tell me you're serious?"

"Oh, I'm dead serious. You're not an Outcast anymore, John. We can't treat you special."

I grit my teeth, and drew my Wattz 1000, aiming it at his helmet.

"Don't make me do this, Ed. I don't want to kill you."

He was silent, motioning for his squad to surround and flank.

"I'm afraid I have to insist, dear friend."

Daydals threw Jade to the side of the road, running forward with a burst of speed.

"NEUTRALIZE HOSTILES."

I ducked, as three lasers flashed through the air where I was standing just a second ago. I fired at the targeting optic on Ed's helmet, missing it by an inch. Daydals leaped, and swung his hammer, catching one of the other Outcasts in the head. I watched the helmet crumple inward, and the Outcast fell over, dead.

"Robbie!"

One of the other Outcasts, a woman, ran over, right into range of Daydals's killer swing. She died on the spot, right beside her Robbie. Ed threw himself to his left, flipping over to land on his back. He fired a shot at Daydals, the beam melting clear through his chest plate.

"Warning. Physical coordination module damaged. Activating redundancy systems."

I tried to shoot at Ed, but I had no ammo. Instead, I dived at him, knocking the rifle from his hands, and ripped off his helmet, seeing his angry face.

"I didn't want to do this, John. You just had to put up a fight, didn't you?"

"HELP!"

Jade cried out, and I swung my head over, seeing an Outcast hold a rifle to her head. In that time, Ed lashed out, his right fist smashing into my face. The iron of blood filled my taste buds, and my eyes watered from the pain.

"Stand down, John. Or we'll shoot the girl."

The Outcast holding Jade laughed, sadism evident. Rage consumed my mind, and I roared.

"I'll kill you, Ed. You're a dead man!"

He chuckled, as he tugged Daedalus away. He eyed my artificial arm, and decided to rip it out, throwing it to the side. The pain was unbearable, and without the Buffout coursing through my system, more than I could take.

"That's right. Good boy. Now, fetch."

I turned, looking at Jade. She smiled at me, looking happy, looking like just a little girl. I heard a discharge, and Jade fell beside me, not moving. The brat? She was... she was ok, right? She's just a kid. H-her right eye... Jade's not dead. But her eye is done for. The laser had gone in diagonally, scorching the right side of her head, and boiled her right eye. The smell of burnt hair filled my nostrils, and I gagged, disgusted. The Outcasts were gone with Daedalus, and I was just lying there, with blood in my mouth. I sat up, yanking my mask off.

"Jade... Answer me, damn it!"

She didn't respond. I stumbled toward her, falling over. The world was gray, and my hearing was gone.

"Jade!"

Why did I care? Why? I reached her, hunched over. Her pulse, it was there. But it was fast, and fluttery. I picked her up, managing to just lean her against my left arm, and her face looked up at me, awake, yet not there.

"GRUAR!"

A Yao Gai lumbered toward me, stopping to rise up on it's hind legs, growling. It glowered at me, surely eyeing the snack in my arms. If I threw her at it, he would stop to feed, and I could escape... Pathetic. Hah, I'm actually thinking of using a little girl as bait. To save my life. A little girl. Jade may be a brat. An annoying little shit, needy, prone to naïveté, and most importantly, she stole my robot. But I wasn't going to let a kid die. I don't kill kids.

"No."

I glared at the beast, and screamed at it, pouring all my rage into my voice. It stood there, staring, not intimidated in the least. It fell onto it's front legs, and began a slow walk toward us, taking it's time. We weren't going anywhere, after all.


	4. Break

Author's Note: Sorry for leaving for a while, the IB program in my school is kicking my ass. Anyway, I'll try and continue again, and keep updating.

-John-

There's a moment, when you're about to die, where your life is flashing before you. My shitty childhood appeared before me, and I saw a kid, crying when he heard of the explosion that took his parents away. I saw him grinning, a brand new Defender in gleaming black and red power armor. Next, he was screaming, clutching at an arm that was no longer there. He fell into Buffout addiction, then out, then back in. He worked tirelessly to become the Outcasts' best mechanic, getting his right arm back. Next, I watched the blooming of love between him and a slave, and then her death at the hands of a green monster. Getting kicked out, wandering, trying to bring her back with machines, failing. I watched it all, and shame fell, heavy on my shoulders.

"Who's going to remember me? Who? I was an asshole. A joke, not a man."

The Yao Gai came closer, drool falling from his mouth, and trailing behind him.

"Maybe I won't be remembered. Maybe I'll be forgotten. But I'm not going to let anyone forget her."

I laid Jade down, smiling at her, and stood up. The Yao Gai stopped, snorting. I met it's beady eyes with my own, seeing hunger and apathy. I crouched slowly, pulling out the knife I kept strapped to my calf. I felt the handle in my left hand, the rubber feeling right.

"Come on. You can fight ME, you rotting shit."

The Yao Gai snorted again, and began it's run, closing the distance fast. I closed my eyes, the taste of blood still fresh, and I barreled forward, determined. I won't die here. Neither will Jade. But the Yao Gai won't be so lucky. It came at me, taking a swipe at me, but I dodged, stepping back just enough for the paw to just miss my chest. I struck, sticking my knife into shoulder, and it growled in agony, batting me aside hard. I was disarmed, while the Yao Gai was unfettered by the attack. It jumped forward, almost crushing me, and lowered it's jaws to crush my face. I grabbed at the nearest thing, grasping Daydals's sledgehammer. With a burst of strength and adrenaline, I stuck the wooden shaft in front of me, and it clamped down, breaking it into pieces. Large splinters became lodged in it's gums, and it yelped, falling back.

"Hurts, doesn't it?"

I slammed my fist into it's nose, forcing it back even farther. While it recovered, I took the chance to rip my knife out, putting it in even more agony. The Yao Gai roared, enraged by my assault. It swung another paw, catching my leather armor, barely missing my skin. I lunged, putting all my power into a downward stab, plunging the knife into it's head. I was screaming, excited by the battle. The Yao Gai, dying, made a final attempt, and sunk it's claws into my chest.

"AAAGGGGHHH!"

I fell back, the world contorting into new shapes and colors around me. I dragged myself along the ground, feeling my life drain while doing so. Jade was still there, face down. I had to get to her, protect her. She'll leave me too. Black was creeping up around my vision, and I felt myself swallowed whole.

* * *

-Jade-

I was floating, in a giant puddle of red. I saw my mommy, and the bad men that broke her, every night. Her smile, making me feel warm. She kept smiling, on my birthday. But she never stopped. I don't think she's done smiling, even now. I have to smile, too. I have to. Mommy told me before she stopped talking that I need to smile, to show the world that it can't beat me. It can't. As long as I don't let it.

"Jade!"

John? His mask showed up in front of me, and it scared me, the skull painted on.

"Mister John, I'm here. I'm floating in a puddle, it looks like I'm flying."

I stretched out my arms, laughing. It started getting darker, the puddle. It became black, and I was surrounded by darkness. I tried to fly, tried hard. But then I began to fall.

* * *

-Jade-

I opened my eyes, but my right eye stayed close. I tried to open it again, but I couldn't feel it at all. I moved my hand toward it, about to open it.

"Don't do that."

I looked around, noticing the fire I was sitting in front of. It was night time, and there was a man, what my mom called a ghoul. Beside him, there was a lady, too, but she wasn't a ghoul.

"Don't touch your eye. It's not okay, right now, and you might hurt it."

I nodded, my face starting to hurt.

"Where's John?"

The ghoul man made a face, but his eyes grew wide.

"Your friend is over there. He's in a lot of pain, but there's a chance that he'll be ok. You're lucky. I've never seen a man kill a Yao Gai with nothing but a knife. But he didn't get off scot free, I'll tell you that."

John was on the other side of the fire, but it was too dark to see him. I crawled over, trying to get closer.

"Be careful. Don't touch him, he might get hurt."

When I reached John's side, I could see everything. He was breathing funny, quiet and fast. His chest was red, but dry. His right arm was gone, so I turned to the lady.

"You have to help me find his arm! He needs it!"

The lady grimaced, looking worried.

"Not now, sweetie. It's too dark. This is dangerous to begin with, making a fire here."

I shook my head, and tried to run away from the fire, I fell, and my face hurt, red hot,

"WAAAGHH!"

I felt strong arms pick me up, and the ghoul man put me back on my sleep bag, tucking me in.

"Listen. I'll find the arm for you. But you sleep, ok?"

I was tired, my eye heavy.

"Thank you, mister ghoul man. But could you move me next to John?"

His face moved, trying to look nice.

"Your welcome, girlie. Of course I can."

Beside John, I held onto his hand tight, to make sure he wouldn't leave. Like mommy.

* * *

-John-

The Yao Gai's slash was burned into my mind, and the agony was almost impossible to take. I thrashed in the waves of flames, reaching out, grasping at anything. I felt a small hand grip my own, and I searched for it's owner. Jade gave me a fierce grin, happy. And then her right eye melted.

* * *

-John-

"AAAAGHHH!"

The sun caught me in the face, and the pain hit me like a deathclaw, hot and intense. Through that, I felt something, hanging onto my hand. It took all my strength to move my head, and see the brat's bandaged head, asleep.

"Jade... you-"

Speech was impossible, for now. The Yao Gai made sure of that.

"Hey. You're awake."

A woman made her way over, trying to put on a reassuring face.

"We found you two lying here, next to a dead Yao Gai. We almost left you, until I saw the girl."

She brushed Jade's hair, her lips slightly curved up.

"I couldn't leave behind someone like her. And someone like you, too. Romero was a bit grouchy about it, but he wanted to help, too. My name's Lisa, by the way."

I blinked, not trusting my words to come up without thorns.

"Hurts to talk, isn't it? Don't worry, you don't have to. Romero's my friend. He's out looking for antibiotics. He can take care of himself, too, so he won't die or anything."

I gave her a quizzical look, wondering why how we had run into such kind people. Lisa read my expression, giving me a reply.

"Call me idealistic, but I believe we Wastelanders should stick together. Otherwise, how do we stay human?"

The profundity of those words made an impression on me, and without realizing, I found myself gazing at Jade. The eye looked bad, a third degree burn that just missed her skull. Maybe the Outcast intended that. But it looked horrible, and I felt guilty. It was my fault this happened. The stupid kid shouldn't have been near the fight.

"I'm back."

I looked over at an approaching ghoul, who hefted a .45 revolver, and a bag of supplies. Romero, I guess.

"I found some antibiotics. It was a lucky find. It'll keep them ok for a couple weeks. But we can't stay with them, Lisa."

Lisa shot up, frustrated.

"What are they going to do without protection, huh?! Some animal could just come along and have a banquet."

The ghoul threw the meds at us, and turned to Lisa.

"We can't stay here. It's dangerous for us, too. If they're blessed, they'll live. But we can die anytime now, as well. Let's go."

The ghoul gathered his things, and gave a silent nod at me. Lisa looked disappointed, but she left with Romero, giving one more fleeting look back at Jade and me before she was gone. I sighed, and slowly reached for the bag, trying not to hurt too much. I was delighted to find Buffout.

"Thank... you..."

I popped a few, and the pain went down to a dull, but still quite painful, throbbing. I tried my hand at standing, and injected a stimpack into my thigh as I did so.

"Agh, that's... better."

I noticed my arm beside Jade, and picked it up to reattach it. After that was finished, I snatched up my things, getting ready to leave.

"Can't stay here. Too much... danger."

I gingerly put Jade in my arms, and began a journey to the gas station a ways away. We were okay. Somehow, we were okay.


	5. Limp

-Jade-

When we got to the gas station, it was empty and abandoned, dust everywhere, John was having a hard time carrying me by the time we made it inside, gasping for breath. He dropped me down on a counter, a bit roughly, but not on purpose.

"Stay here. I... need to scavenge."

He could barely breathe well, and he was already going out.

"No! Mister John, don't leave. You're very hurt. You shouldn't move too much."

He stopped, teetering on his feet.

"We barely... have supplies. We need... more."

I was scared for John. He might end up like Mommy. Eyes open, but not seeing.

"Please. We'll be safe for a while. We have some food and water."

He slumped forward, and came back, sinking into a chair beside the counter.

"So tired. Sleep."

He closed his eyes, falling into a deep sleep. I got down from the counter, feeling very weak.

"Mister John needs to rest. But me, I can find stuff."

I creeped over to John, looking through his pack. I found his laser gun, all shiny, but empty. I had watched John enough times to know how to replace the battery. Grabbing a few energy packs, I pit one inside. Walking slowly over to the door, I took one last look, and left, to reach the Super Duper Mart in the distance.

* * *

-Jade-

It was dark and damp, and radroaches scurried around, looking for food. My hands shook, and the laser gun made small little jiggling noises. One of the big bugs saw me, and started toward me. No, no, no. I hate bugs, I hate them! I screamed, closed my eye, and shot at it 5 times.

"LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Looking at it, I saw the pile of ash I made.

"Oops."

"Who's there?!"

I heard a deep voice, loud and scratchy. It sounded like a monster, one of those super mutants. I jumped inside one of the freezers beside me, trying to hide as best I could.

"Is that a little girl? Don't worry, I won't hurt you, little one."

I didn't trust that voice, but he didn't sound mean. I peaked up, seeing a super mutant, trying to smile.

"I am Uncle Leo, girl. I will not hurt you. I am a super mutant that embraces pacifism."

I darted back down, still frightened. But he seemed sweet.

"Here. A peace offering."

Something fell beside me, and my eyes widened. It was a bottle, nearly full to the brim with Rad-X.

"I do not need it. I am immune to radiation, but I can feel this place bathing in it. Please, take a few."

I knew about that strange stuff that killed so many men before me. I popped 3, feeling safer.

"Good, good, little one. What is your name?"

I decided to trust him. He didn't seem bad, like the other green men.

"Jade. I'm looking for food. Could you help me?"

He scratched his head, something that was hard for him to do.

"I've found a couple cans of pork and beans. You're are welcome to some, if you want."

I nodded vigorously, climbing out of the freezer.

"Little one, what happened to your eye?"

"What do you mean?"

He came closer, and I flinched without realizing.

"It's gone."

* * *

-Daydals-

The robot played dead, giving the appearance of shutting down to fool his captors. Daydals was actually watching, waiting for the right moment to strike. With catastrophic damage to his primary coordination module, he was as strong as an adult male human. Scanning his situation, he deduced having a limited selection of options. His captors were not foolish, watching him almost constantly. The man who attacked Jade carried Daydals, making comments about disliking this duty.

"This robot is fucking heavy. Why don't you carry it, Ed?"

"Shut the hell up, Jack. I'm a better shot than you, so I have a better chance of taking care of any problems."

Jack would grumble, and Daydals noted the dissatisfaction and aggression he had toward his companion. The robot had formulated a plan for escape, as his captors had not slept for many days. But while he made this plan, he faced a strange conflict. Logic pointed toward escape, yet, he was undergoing a strange malfunction. Despite the fact that neutralizing the hostiles during escape would jeopardize his chances, he wanted to terminate the aggressor known as Jack. The malfunction persisted as an automatic disposition to switch into combat mode at the sight of Jack, and an urge to remove himself from close proximity to Jack. From user history, Daydals pulled data to scan this malfunction. He gave it a name. Anger.

* * *

-Jade-

Wait, my eye was gone? It... it can't be. It was just closed. Uncle Leo looked pained, reaching toward me.

"Don't worry about it, girl. Many people have only one eye."

I had to check. My hand moved to my right eye, and I tried to open the eyelid and see, but there was nothing. Just black.

"No! No! Why?!"

I started to cry, tears running down my face in streams.

"I can't see! I can't see!"

Uncle Leo finally got close, reaching out to hug me. I moved away, still terrified of the whole situation.

"Don't touch me!"

The mutant recoiled, obviously hurt. It didn't matter. I was missing an eye! He started moving away, unable to deal with the situation. I heard a thump on the counter, and the door closed, Uncle Leo gone. I sat there, still crying. I need to pull myself together. John is in trouble. I have to help him. Drying my tears, I looked at the counter, noticing the bag left behind by Uncle Leo. Opening it, I found food and water, with some meds mixed in, too. I turned to the night sky, and whispered to the vast wasteland.

"Thank you, Uncle Leo. I'll never forget you."

* * *

-Jade-

I scrambled toward the gas station, stumbling with the heavy bag in my arms. I did so well! Even though I had help, I knew John would be proud of me. I opened the door, walking inside.

"Mister John, I got some supplies!"

He was still lying there, asleep in his chair. I ran over, shaking him awake.

"Look!"

I thrust the bag onto his lap, and he looked inside.

"Where'd you... get this?"

He was pale, and breathing fast. I had to give him something.

"Wait here."

I went to the other side of the room, where our things were. Searching, I came up with the jar of Buffout, and a stimpack. I walked back to John, making him take the Buffout. I didn't really have much trouble, to be honest. He seemed desperate for it. Once he swallowed, I jabbed the stimpack into his thigh, and he breathed out, peace in his eyes.

"Thanks, brat. You need to take some too, though. Buffout, than stimpack."

I did as I was told, and I felt like I was floating. No more pain from my face. Just bubbly feelings and stuff. Nice and relaxing. But my eye. I had no right eye. There would only be darkness there, always.

* * *

-John-

Well. She sure is filled with surprises. I grit my teeth, standing up, hunched over. My wounds were going to take a long time to recover. I had to check on them, to make sure they wouldn't get infected. Making sure Jade was sound asleep, I went into the gas station's bathroom, taking my time. Taking a deep breath, which was a chore by itself, I stripped off my armor and clothing to take a look. The damage was catastrophic. The Yao Gai had eviscerated my chest, and I felt many bruised ribs. The bullet wound in my stomach had almost completely healed, thanks to the stimpacks. The sear on my calf was gone, as well. My main problem was the chest wound. I need to fix it right away. The edges were becoming green, and oozing, a sure fire sign of infection.

"Fuck."

I opened my bag, staring at the various bits and pieces. My hands working as quick as possible, and I constructed a muscle supplement, a larger scale version of what I gave to Jade. By the time I was finished, the sun had risen. I had used the rest of the old Mr. Gutsy self repair parts, so getting wounded was something i couldn't afford in the future. I cleaned up the wound, disinfecting it rubbing alcohol and a knife, rending off the pieces that were gone for. I stuffed a rag in my mouth, biting down hard, and slammed the patch on.

"AAAAAGGGGHHH!"

It was excruciating. I felt wires burrowing into my flesh, making their way to my muscles. Latching on, the sensation took away my breath, my mind beginning to blank from agony. The wires dug even deeper into the muscle tissue, and latched on, sending out the electric pulses needed to loosen some of the inhibitions in my brain. The pain was gone, the supplement finished, molding into a simple metallic patch. I had to be careful, now. These supplements are useful, but they're a double edged sword. Restore strength to a weakened area, but make that area more easily damaged. I grunted, rising to my feet.

"Well. I'm alright, for now."

Tired, I made my way back to my chair, and fell asleep.


	6. Meaning

-Daydals-

The Outcast aggressors were asleep, crippled by their exhaustion. Daydals fully powered on, and activated his stealth routines. As he went farther from his captors, Daydals ran into the malfunction, the one he dubbed Anger. A portion of his objective data became corrupted, and a new piece took it's place: terminate the aggressor known as Jack.

"New objective in conflict with priority one objective. Error."

Jack damaged User Jade. Major priority is to find User Jade. But. Jack is an aggressor. Dangerous and mentally unstable. Aggressor Jack has damaged Jade. Synthesized data has suggested that Jack be terminated.

"Error. Error. New objective in conflict with self-preservation protocols. User Jade was damaged. User Jade was damaged. USER JADE WAS DAMAGED."

Daydals fell to his knees, his hands outstretched, his gaze fixated on them. The malfunction took hold, and the corruption grew, infecting all his data, and rewriting him on the spot.

"..."

Daydals remained there, and the sun rose behind him, an Outcast following suit.

"What the fuck...?"

Jack walked forward, his weapon beside his bed roll, forgotten.

"What the hell are you doing over here? Make trouble, and we take you back in pieces."

Daydals was silent, but finally, he turned, and a strange glow was in his eyes.

"You will never hurt Jade again."

* * *

-John-

I stretched out my abdominal muscles, and grit my teeth through the needles of pain shooting through my chest.

"Motherfucker."

Jade was still asleep, and I couldn't help but stare at the place where her right eye should have been.

"Damn it. Damn it!"

I punched the wall, ignoring the flare of pain. Back on the road, I let that shithead do that to her. I don't hurt kids, I don't kill them, but all I've been doing is hurting her. Because of me, she doesn't have a right eye. Damn it! I yanked at my hair, feeling the affects of my own self loathing. Her right eye, my right arm, I just screw up everyone, don't I? That was when the idea hit me.

"Wait. There's something I could actually do."

I snatched up my bag, rummaging through it. The power helmet optics were still there, and so was the plating.

"Maybe, just maybe, I could make her an eye out of this."

It was no use, though. I needed some self repair circuits from a Mister Gutsy, the A.I. chip of one of the medic variants, and most importantly, someone with the skill to connect the whole thing to her optic nerve.

"I could find the parts, but there's no doctor good enough to open someone's head up safely."

"What are you talking about, John?"

Jade looked up at me from her bed roll, rubbing her eyes. I scratched my face, feeling a thick beard growing fast.

"Nothing, brat. Go back to sleep, ok?"

She smiled, and my chest ached as shame washed over me.

"Alright. Remember, you need to get some rest, too."

She closed her eye, and sank back into slumber. I... it's just like the rest of my life. Jade was just another person I failed to protect. My face felt wet, and I tried to ignore it, revel in my own tantrum

"Fuck, now I'm crying like a baby. Like a little girl. No, worse than that. Jade, she's way more strong than me."

I slammed my fist into the wall again, trembling with rage. This is why I don't let these people near me. It never works out. And now I can't let go.

"I may call you a parasite, but really, I'm the leech."

* * *

-Daydals-

The motors of my right arm were damaged. That other man, Ed, was still asleep when I left. Strangling the aggressor Jack was difficult, and his struggles were what damaged my right arm. But in the end, he died quickly, in my hands, with me watching the life leave his face.

"I killed. I killed and watched. Watched Aggressor Jack die."

My legs were damaged as well, from the exertion I had put them through these last days. They would remain functional for 5 miles, but after that, they would give out.

"Must find User Jade. Primary objective."

I reflected, scanning the data, the majority of it corrupted. I don't know when, but some time this morning, I had begun to refer to myself in first person. Indeed, I was frightened of the strange sensations that were coursing through my... head. They were chaotic variables, disrupting my routines and scans. From the cerebral data transfer I performed with User Jade, I made my conclusions. I thought that what I was feeling were emotions. But that's not possible. I am a synthetic creation, mechanical, supposed to be unable to access such things.

"Something is wrong. There is an error."

I turned my attention toward the road I was walking down, and noticed a large factory.

"Robco. Some of my components were built there. Self maintenance might be possible there."

I walked toward the building, experiencing the feeling of apprehension. I could sense hostiles inside, biological in nature. My data banks suggested that they were a species, dubbed Giant Naked Mole Rats.

"I do not want to fixate the hostile tag on them. Maybe they could be passive."

Entering the factory, I was confronted with one of the animals. I walked forward, holding out my hand.

"I mean no threat. I will not hurt y-"

The creature was still for a moment, and lunged, gnashing a finger of my hand.

"Engage the hostile."

It jumped at me again, but I ducked, darting my other hand into it's abdomen, and ripped out it's heart. The mole rat died mid leap, it's corpse hitting a desk and resting there.

"Why did it attack?"

This place was so strange. I did not understand the necessity for the creature to be hostile. I did not mean harm, as I simply wanted to procure supplies for my maintenance. It's death was not necessary.

"More repairs required."

I pried open the jaws of the mole rat, wrenching my finger from it's teeth. It was completely crushed, beyond repair.

"Useless."

I placed it on a counter near me, and finally focused on my preliminary observations. There was a variety of electronic components, and 2 pods containing, according to Jade's data, Protons. I studied the Protons, and I hypothesized that they were powered down. While prying a pod open, I was alerted by one of my monitoring routines.

"Warning. Battery power low. Please input 3 new electron charge packs."

Bad. Very bad. I calculated the rationing of my energy consumption, and concluded that I had enough energy to pry open the pod, and function for one more hour.

"Would this Proton run on electron charge packs?"

I fit my fingers back into the door of the pod, and 5 minutes later, it was open. I tore the Proton open, searching it for electron charge packs, and found nothing.

"Warning. Power at 7%. Shutting down in 30 minutes."

I disabled some processes and routines, extending my time to 46 minutes. I resumed my rummaging around in the Proton, and came up with a small, rectangular humming box. I searched my database for its purpose, but I had nothing.

"Power levels recharging."

Holding the box with both my hands on it's ends, I realized that energy was being conducted into my system.

"This is a battery pack. I will keep it for prolonged performance."

Hanging onto it, I continued my exploration of the factory, killing any mole rats I found as I went. It was an hour later that I made quite the discovery: the Robco Mainframe.

* * *

-John-

The agony was returning, set free in Buffout's absence. Before it crippled me, I jammed two of the blessed pills down my throat, and felt the pain subside. There was no longer a haze for me, though. I've taken too much for too long to experience that anymore.

"Ugh, I'm a fucking mess."

My whole body was weakened, and I could barely stand up straight. In my state, I was about as useful as the brat. Oh, wait, less useful.

"Come on, boys, let's search this place!"

Fuck, raiders. I dove behind the counter in front of the door, and scanned the room for my rifle. It glinted on one of the shelves, and I swore, scurrying to go get it. My fingers wrapped around the stock as I heard the door open.

"Shit!"

The raider brought up his SMG to shoot, but I was ready. Time felt as if it slowed, and I breathed out, pulling the trigger and ending his life. He fell onto his knees, and went down, dead.

"John, what's going on?!"

Jade ran over to me, scared. I grabbed her by the scruff of her shirt, and threw her behind the counter.

"STAY DOWN!"

Silence quickly draped the room, but I listened to the bandit's friends moving toward the door. I rolled, reaching the side of the doorway, and stood up, waiting. Maybe I can reason with them.

"Listen, we don't need to fight! You can walk away, and nobody else needs to die!"

More silence, and then their answer.

"You killed our friend, you fucker! You're going to die, and we're going to dance on your corpse!"

These idiots. This isn't going to go well.

"Alright, then. But now you gotta deal with the mechanical prodigy of the Capital Wasteland!"

I snatched up a tin can at my feet and threw it through the doorway, leaning out right then. They instinctively shot at the can, and I took the few precious milliseconds to fire off a few shots at the man with the Norinco. I hit him in the chest, melting a hole into his rib cage. He screamed, and I ducked back into the store, breathing hard. Bullets whizzed near me head, and I tensed up, scared.

"YOU'RE GONNA DIE, ASSHOLE!"

Come on, waste your magazine. Then you'll get to meet up with your friends. Sure enough, I heard the familiar click of an empty chamber. I stepped out from cover, only to have the guy punch me hard.

"It's not over just yet!"

The raider jumped on top of me, raising his gun above his head in a death blow. I threw a jab into his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. I got on top this time, and started beating him. He threw a right hook at me, knocking me senseless. I fell back, and he scrambled away from me, eyes darting back and forth, looking for a weapon. He snatched up a Nuka Cola bottle, breaking it and holding it towards my direction. He advanced, and stabbed at me, the bottle connecting with the metal arm I held up. I pushed forward, slamming him against the shelves behind him. Knocking the bottle out of his hand, I grabbed his head, mashing it on the shelf behind him. I could see crimson, but I continued, until a voice pierced the haze of bloodlust.

"John, stop!"

Jade was pulling at me, wet tears streaming from her eyes.

"He's asleep, can't you see? You don't have to kill him."

The raider was indeed unconscious, and I dropped him, panting heavily. The thought of finishing him right there crossed my mind, but Jade's fear and anguish stopped me in my tracks.

"I had to, Jade. It's kill, or be killed. That's how it is, and you know it as well as anybody else, damn it!"

"Why does it have to be that way?"

"That's how the world works, Jade! We can't do anything about it!"

So innocent. Her face told me that she didn't believe my words. She couldn't, after all. It was impossible to accept, for a girl like her. I beckoned for her to come closer, checking for injuries. Finding none, I grabbed her shoulders, my worry taking over.

"When you hear a fight going on, you need to stay down. I can't let you get hurt anymore."

She nodded, slightly scared. I helped her slip her backpack on, and went to get my things.

"We need to go. It's not safe here."

I took the time to inspect myself, and realized that several of the servos in my arm were damaged, or completely beyond repair. I unfolded the map I kept with me, checking it for some sort of factory nearby.

"We're heading to the Robco factory."

Jade was sullen, choosing not to speak to me. I felt a pang of something painful in my gut, and inspected myself, but found nothing. I walked over to my charge, looking her in the eye.

"I'm... I'm sorry you had to see that, Jade. But it's how we need to be with people. Some of the guys out here, they're horrible. They would like nothing better than to make you suffer. I'm not going to let that happen."

No reaction. I tried to give her a reassuring smile, but with the taste of blood in my mouth, I thought better of it.

"Let's go."

I offered my hand, and felt her own slip into it. Closing the door behind me, we cast out into the Wasteland.


End file.
